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Color me boring but....

What about a JFET test rig? Something that could be used to match JFETs for a Phase AND.... for Idss, etc. Something slick and useful in Madbean fashion.

This way when the many questions about JFETs are posted, anyone can point to the project and say "Build this and ye shall find the way!" 

I really like this idea. We all love fuzz and overdrives but maybe something like this would help other people discover other fx they like to build!

My other thought is maybe a stripped down version of the Cave Dweller. Maybe a fixed level and tone and just have the time and fdbk as pots.
-Mike-


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Love the Beast graphic! Great job!
-Mike-


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I'm sure this means that Pre-Gibson Mesa prices are going to be going up

Yup they are going to me even more over priced than they were...looks like if I ever want one I'll need to take out a second mortgage on my house.


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I use a Fishman Loudbox Mini as my bench amp. Then when I actually have a few min and get to play a few songs I use a Peavey Prowler. The Peavey is a 45 watt tube amp and the Fishman is a 60watt solid state. They both work well for pedals. I love the clean and lead channels of the Prowler.
-Mike-

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You can get Newark's house brand (Multicomp Pro) for pretty cheap with no minimum order quantity. I'd say it's on par with Xicon.

Here's a link: https://www.newark.com/w/c/passive-components/resistors-fixed-value/through-hole-resistors?brand=multicomp-pro&resistance=1kohm&power-rating=250mw&resistance-tolerance=posneg-1pc

I've used these for numerous projects they are great quality.
-Mike-

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They sold the company a few years back and the new owners seem to only want to do enclosures now...and for a very high cost I might add. They only do 25 count minimum on enclosures and they're more expensive than anyone else. I miss the days of Connie, she was great!
-Mike-


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It doesn't matter that you've already put the time into making the PCB for yourself, they need to come to you to get it.

If they are getting the gerbers: Charge $50 an hour for the time you originally spent making the board, or a flat rate per placed component.

If they are just getting the boards: Price the boards according to similar projects but give them a bulk discount of like 10%.

Let them negotiate if they want from there.

Solid advice!

You've all given me very good idea of what I should charge. As most of you that have commented know, I've been at this "racket" for a while now. I'm not as experienced as most of those that have commented and I'm glad that you have all done so.

So you have all asked some really good questions. They will not be getting the Gerber files. Those I'll keep. I'm assuming they have an idea of what they want to pay and have been very transparent in the "exchange" so far. These would only be in a short run of pedals and the boards would not be sold individually.

After being in the fx industry for a while and purchasing WAY more than my fair share of boards and even having one layout of my sold by a 3rd party (LoveMySwitches Whammoth) I have an idea of what they sell for at a retail level.

My main question was, is / should there be a discount for the "bulk" buy? From most of the comments and posts it looks like yes but don't under sell myself. So for a board that would sell for $7 each, maybe a 15-20% discount for the 30 customized boards sounds decent. Maybe that is too much considering what people sell short runs / custom builds for now a days. Thoughts?


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Hey Guys,
I had someone reach out to me and asked if I could do a layout for them. I already have the PCB designed. I really just need to move a few things around and put their name on it. I was wondering if anyone here has had experience with this and what you would charge for something like this? They would be buying a quantity of 20-30 boards. I already have pricing from the FAB house (for 30 boards). My cost, shipped to me is about $1.25 per board. So, should I break it down to come out to cost per board, and how much would one charge for something like this? Thanks in advance for ANY advice you can give me.
-Mike-

Hardware like that is tough. I do suggest replacing it. If you are looking for parts floydrose.com is a good place to start. I see that "Jackson" is stamped into the bridge so you should be able to salvage 90% of it. If the stripped screws will not come out at all here is a trick I used to used when I repaired medical equipment that used set screws.

-get a handheld Dremel with a cutting wheel attachment

-VERY carefully cut a slot in the center of the top of the screw head using the cutting wheel. Be careful not to go to the edges as you do not want to damage the bridge.

-be sure to cut the slot across the Allen insert and make sure it is wide and long enough to fit a, fairly beefy <- technical term, flat blade screwdriver.

-spray a little WD40 after cutting the slot. This will get into the threads a little easier now and also cool the screw head down.

-Then use said "beefy" screw driver to remove stuck screw.

I have used this with success many times on many different things. After you get the screw out you should be able to match the thread count and screw head size on a hardware site. If the floydrose.com site doesn't have the exact screw you may want to check McMaster-Carr or another hardware site. They have loads of strange screws and other random hardware. They even have diagrams on how to match thread count or measure thread pitch. I hope this helps.
-Mike-


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I got an S2 a couple years back. They are amazing instruments! Enjoy, that is a super nice color too!


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Update: got the pedal back and everything works fine! I am beyond angry now. This guy is officially fired! I am refunding his money, less the 2 unnecessary shipping costs and $50 for my pain and suffering.


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[Everybody is an unreasonable asshole]

This is exactly why I stopped building one-off stuff for strangers years ago. Everybody is an unreasonable asshole when it comes to custom work.

On the other hand, these days it would be pretty easy to troubleshoot an "it doesn't work" bullshit scenario via Facetime, Zoom, Google Meet, etc. I would them prove it doesn't work -- LIVE -- before I would entertain a return.

Yes it would. I wish I had thought of that!

I do plan on building short runs (5 or 10 of a pedal at a time) for a bit to see if anything flourishes from it. But the custom one off stuff, aside from close friends, it not for me anymore. "This guy" has helped me over the fence on that decision.
He's a nice guy (seemingly) but I just don't have the time or patience anymore for this kind of crap. I love the hobby and refuse to let anyone ruin it for me.
-Mike-


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I recently built a Hoof clone for one of my friends. This was my favorite sounding muff that I've built so far. I used the layout on the Perf board site. I linked it below for you. The "Shift" function on that opened up a world of sounds. It was a very cool and fun build.
-Mike-

http://effectslayouts.blogspot.com/2015/03/earthquaker-devices-hoof.html

I am a MASSIVE Deftones fan and can't say enough good things about the new album (even though Steph uses a 9 string guitar). It's a lot better than I thought it was going to be. Link below. Name of the album is "Ohms"
-Mike-

//[url="http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxA687tYuMWhi3UBi74hh6-_8OjaKNXYV"]http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxA687tYuMWhi3UBi74hh6-_8OjaKNXYV [\URL]


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Ok I may have used your name in vain a few times as I tried cramming all that shit in a tiny 1590A box but damned if they haven't all worked :-)

Bwahahahaha


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Hahahahaha!


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